The Indiana Pacers have agreed to sign Lance Stephenson to a three-year deal worth $12 million with a team option in Year 3.

The Pacers will have a roster spot with the release of Rodney Stuckey.

Stephenson left the Pacers to sign with the Charlotte Hornets in the 2014 offseason. Stephenson has since played for the Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans and Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Indiana Pacers blew a fourth quarter lead in their 115-114 loss on Tuesday to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

“Pissed,” George said in describing his emotions. “I know I was pissed. It’s the only to really sum it up.”

The Pacers are now just one game ahead of the Heat.

“We should have a professional approach, man, and defend our home court, especially to a team that’s not even in the playoffs,” George said of losing to the Timberwolves (29-44). “That’s what it comes down to. As a team, we’ve got to have a grit and we’ve got to own up, man up.”

George criticized his teammates for the Pacers' inability to win a key game.

“There’s no urgency, no sense of urgency, no winning pride,” he said.

The Indiana Pacers will waive Rodney Stuckey.

Stuckey is out several weeks with a patellar strain.

Stuckey had an April 10th guarantee date on his contract for the 17-18 season worth $7 million.

Rodney Stuckey has a left patellar tendon strain and is expected to miss four to six weeks.

Stuckey sustained the injury in Sunday night’s win by the Indiana Pacers over Philadelphia.

Paul George heard some cheers when he was introduced as a visiting member of the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night in Boston and was asked afterward about how the fans received him and his future with the Pacers.

“Yeah, I guess they were in on the rumors,” George said of how fans received him at TD Garden.

In the days leading up to February’s trade deadline the Celtics were reportedly one of a few teams to engage in talks with the Pacers on George.

“I didn't put no energy into it. It was out of my control,” George said of rumors that he might have been traded to the Celtics. "If I was here, I was here. If I remained a Pacer, I was a Pacer. I wasn’t going to put any unnecessary energy where I had no control over.”

George, who can become an unrestricted free agent after the 2017-18 season, was then asked if he wanted to remain with the Pacers.

“Yeah,” he replied. "If we have a great team, why not?”

George added that if Indiana didn’t have an improved roster, “then me and front office will talk.”

The Philadelphia 76ers offered a significant trade package at the deadline for Paul George.

The 76ers reportedly offered the Pacers their choice of Jahlil Okafor or Nerlens Noel along with Robert Covington and at least two future first round picks for George.

The 76ers' preference was to keep their own future picks and move the draft rights of other teams like those of the Los Angeles Lakers and Sacramento Kings to protect themselves in case George left in 2018.

The 76ers were not turned off by George's preference to play for the Lakers. Philadelphia was confident in their ability to convince George to stay with their young core of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons and Dario Saric.

The Indiana Pacers will do everything they can to keep Paul George in the long-term.

The Pacers plan on having approximately $20 million in cap space and will also look to use their own first round pick to acquire a player that will help them immediately.

"I have a budget," Larry Bird said. "Whatever that budget is, I'll spend it. Sometimes, we can't go after max guys, or players we really think could help us, because of our budget."

George wants to play for a contender and the Pacers appear to be stuck somewhere between that strata and the lottery.

"Paul wants to compete for a title," Bird said. "We want Paul here. He has expressed that he wants to be here. That could change overnight. You never know. But whatever I can spend, I'm going to spend."

The Pacers don't have the luxury of being able to afford a full rebuild.

"We can't do that around here," Bird said.

The Indiana Pacers began to have issues during their run of reaching the Conference Finals during the second half of the 13-14 season.

Lance Stephenson didn't make the All-Star Game while Roy Hibbert was selected. The Pacers then traded Danny Granger for Evan Turner, which upset the locker room and unnerved Stephenson. 

"There were issues with Lance not making the All-Star team," Frank Vogel said. "The addition of Evan kind of screwed him up. Evan's a great guy. The moves totally made sense. They just messed us up a little."

Stephenson turned down a five-year, $44 million deal that July and signed with the Charlotte Hornets. 

The Indiana Pacers discussed a Paul George trade with at least the Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets at the trade deadline.

The Pacers never appeared serious about actually trading George. According to sources, George has interest in playing with Gordon Hayward, who is from Indiana.

George wants to play for a contender and can be a free agent in 2018.

George has been linked to the Los Angeles Lakers as the place he would like to play if he leaves Indiana.

Larry Bird claims the Indiana Pacers weren't interested in trading Paul George at the deadline.

The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics were amongst the teams who called Bird. Magic Johnson's call to Bird lasted less than five minutes and consisted mostly of small talk.

“I wasn’t motivated to move Paul George at the deadline,” Bird said. “I can’t remember if it was even brought up or not. I don’t think it was. It’s all fake news anyway. You know that. Somebody’s gonna start it and [it] just was a snowball effect. [The phone call] was not about Paul George.”

George can become a free agent in 2018 and reportedly will consider signing with the Lakers.